Degrees2Dreamshttp://degrees2dreams.com
Launch Your CareerSun, 17 Jan 2016 06:21:32 +0000en-UShourly1https://wordpress.org/?v=4.7.5Why Students & Recent Grads Should Use Social Media To Land A Career-Launching Jobhttp://degrees2dreams.com/blog/2013/07/25/why-students-and-recent-grads-should-use-social-media-to-land-a-career-launching-job/
http://degrees2dreams.com/blog/2013/07/25/why-students-and-recent-grads-should-use-social-media-to-land-a-career-launching-job/#respondThu, 25 Jul 2013 20:16:05 +0000http://degrees2dreams.com/?p=2821Social media can power your search for the career-launching job in your dream field. Watch “Why Use Social Media to Land Your Career-Launching Job” slideshow to learn how.
]]>http://degrees2dreams.com/blog/2013/07/25/why-students-and-recent-grads-should-use-social-media-to-land-a-career-launching-job/feed/0Tips for Recent Graduates on the Hunt for a Jobhttp://degrees2dreams.com/blog/2013/07/23/tips-for-recent-graduates-on-the-hunt-for-a-job/
http://degrees2dreams.com/blog/2013/07/23/tips-for-recent-graduates-on-the-hunt-for-a-job/#respondTue, 23 Jul 2013 23:04:17 +0000http://degrees2dreams.com/?p=2807

Searching for a job can be a scary thing — especially when you’re fresh out of college and lack considerable experience in the professional world. Here a few tips from SoftwareAdvice.com for the young hopefuls trying to land that first job out of college.

1. Clean up your social media accounts

To begin with what should be the most obvious, it’s important to make sure your online personality reflects a level of professionalism. Hiring managers will do their research on you before they meet you, and they certainly don’t want to see that you have poor grammar and inappropriate pictures polluting your page. So make sure you’re in control of your real first impression — your online impression.

2. Go after “foundational” roles

Much like it sounds, a “foundational” role lays the foundation for your career. It’s a job that will teach you what the professional world is all about and equip you with the skills you’ll need for every future job, as well. Tell a hiring manager that you are actively seeking this type of role, and they will be impressed with your career-mindedness.

3. Practice answering common interview questions

There are certain questions you can expect to hear in any interview. For instance, a hiring manager will almost always ask why you want the job. You should be prepared with a solid answer of how you can contribute to the company and why you are a good fit for the role they’re hiring for. Before heading into your interview, take some time to look at common interview questions, and plan out the things you feel are important for the hiring manager to know about you. Then, construct clear, concise answers to highlight those traits. You’ll come off as a polished and composed young professional, which hiring managers like.

4. Develop an “Elevator Pitch”

As a recent graduate, you probably don’t have a lot of relevant work experience. You do, however, have a personal story that includes learning experiences from which you gained valuable tools — tools hiring managers expect you to have. What you need to be able to do, though, is condense this information into what’s commonly referred to as an “elevator pitch,” and sell these traits.

An elevator pitch is simply a way to pitch yourself and your most relevant, useful traits in a short amount of time — or the time it takes to get from your starting floor to your destination. You have a short amount of time to convey who you are as a person in an interview, so make sure you get your pitch down. Be sure to stress your talents and energy in lieu of actual working experience.

5. Be Yourself

Obviously, a level of professionalism is required for an interview. It’s important that the hiring manager perceive you as someone who is serious about the job. That being said — don’t overdo it. They also want to know that you’re a real person, and that working with you would be an enjoyable experience. Don’t be afraid to show your personality.

Calling all college students- you undoubtedly have enough on your plate without having to worry about how your college experiences affect the probability of you getting a job. But… it’s true. So give these 12 College Experiences Your Resume Needs a shot. (It’s as simple as joining a club)!

If your internship experience is going downhill fast, there’s no need to waste your time. Read about How To Quit Your Internship The Right Way and open up the doors to a better opportunity without making waves.

Bloggers, you might think you’re doing a fabulous job churning out those posts but clicking the publish button without going through the proper editing process is an shamefully easy thing to do. Make sure you content is as HQ as you think it is by going through The Ultimate Editing Checklist.

Preparing yourself for that first job is just as important as prepping for an interview. It never hurts to think ahead! Keep in mind these 5 Mistakes Not To Make At Your First Job. You’ll be doing yourself a favor!

If you’re like me, you’ve been making PowerPoint presentations since middle school. It gets old. But creating an engaging presentation is a skill worth developing, and one you’ll repeatedly find yourself in need of. So here’s How To Create a Captivating Presentation, Slideshare style.

There are a great many things that put the free in Freelancing; free time, boss free, dress code free. If you’re lacking in the experience department, however, you might want to ensure you don’t end up salary free by reading How To Start Freelancing With No Experience. It can be done!

Having covered the ups and downs of Flavors.me, About.me, and Re-vu, I’m sure those neurons must be firing — axons pumping, nerves singing, synapses… synapsing. If you’ve decided upon your “Me-Site” platform, that’s great! Happy Me-Site making to you, sir.

But it’s certainly worth sticking around to learn about more Me Site alternatives … just in case. If you’re still undecided, never fear, we’ve got two more Me-Site makers for your viewing pleasure. You never know… Wix might be the one for you!

Re.vu’s beautiful graphics, quantifiable achievements, and unique services stood out with us, though the brilliance was slightly dampened by our inability to make it our own. It was, never-the-less, quite a stunner. Here’s our little, handy-dandy review before we begin our next dissection:

Our options so far have been one-page wonders but with Wix, we’re shaking things up a bit. Instead of providing you with a single page, Wix offers its users an entirewebsite to work with. And according to the site’s home page, more than 31 million people have decided to take advantage of their service. And why not? With easy customization, HTML 5 Technology, and no coding necessary, what’s not to like? Well, we’re hoping nothing but let’s find out!

Like all the other Me-Site platforms we’ve taken apart, the Wix registration is simple — we’re set up with an account in no time and ready to roll. The offers 10 categories ranging from Business & Services to Creative Arts to Personal. Each of these categories is further divided into subcategories, all to help you choose a template that best suits your needs. Since I’m a graphic designer, I naturally made a beeline for the Design tab and selected the Designer as well as Portfolio subcategories.

The options that appear are superb- there are pages and pages of beautiful, professionally designed website templates at your fingertips, ready to view or edit. If you (somehow) don’t like what you’re seeing under the categories you initially selected, you can explore other tabs via the navigation bar on the left of the screen. Don’t feel wedded to a category, simply because it applies to your career field. For our purposes, any and all of these templates can work Me-Site magic. Since we’re into great background photos, the photography-related templates may worth a look.

When a template strikes your fancy, be sure to click on the “View” button before you make any drastic moves! Do a bit of exploration — note the location of the navigation bar, how the pages transition, hover your mouse over elements to see effects, and click on all the pages to view the different layouts. Ultimately, be certain you’re fond of your chosen template because once you’ve begun to edit your Me-Site, template changes cannot be made. You’d have to start from scratch with a different option which is no bueno!

All set? Good! Let the editing begin. Clicking “edit this site” sends us off to where all the magic happens. You’ll be faced with your layout as it was in the preview, images, text and all. At the top of the screen is a toolbar where you can switch between the site’s pages, undo edits, preview your layout, save and publish.

The chief toolbar in the editing mode is on the left-hand side of the screen. It’s made of five buttons:

Pages, where you can edit page settings such as the title, incorporate keywords for SEO, and alter page transitions,

Design, where you can change background images, colors schemes, and font styles,

Add, where you can incorporate a number of elements such as text, images, image galleries, social media icons, and apps,

Settings, where you can optimize your site for sharing on social media sites and SEO

App Market, where Wix provides users with a number of applications that can add fantastic features like social media feeds, custom forms, QR codes, polls — the fun seems endless

In these five buttons is a world of power. As you begin to edit, you’ll find there is nothing you cannot alter. The customization options, even within a template, are almost limitless! And what’s more is that it’s all incredibly intuitive. Drag, drop, double-click, ta da!

To edit text or images that are already on the page, simply click on the element in question and a toolbar will appear, allowing you to edit or go into other settings. For certain elements, there’s even a “Change Style” option in which different pre-established and beautifully designed styles of say, navigations bars, are available to choose from.

If you wish to add more images, text boxes, galleries or other types of media, simply click the “Add” button on the left, select your element of choice, and click.

What is astounding is that you don’t really have to lift a single finger throughout the making of your site. It’s all there at your fingertips from social media icons to optimal font combos. Wix has done all the dirty work for you!

If you can’t figure something out, click the question mark button in the corner of your site or one of the menus, and you’ll find the answers to all your questions. For some questions, there are even comprehensive video tutorials to help you along the way. Talk about support!

Once you’ve completed your Me-Site, you’re ready to go public. Again, it’s easy as pie — with a click of the “Publish” button and a few seconds, you’re as good as gold.

Your debut comes with a bit of bad news, however, because right beneath the “CONGRATULATIONS!” message is an “UPGRADE” button, letting you know you can have Wix ads removed if you simply click on the button and sign up for an account with a monthly fee.

Sure enough, when you click through to your brand new Me-Site, that gorgeous page is surrounded by not-so-gorgeous advertisements endorsing Wix. Though Wix tries it’s best to keep these advertisements on the edges of your Me Site, they do some serious damage to the vibe. You get what you pay for, right? In this case, forking over $8.25/month on the yearly plan or $10.95/month on the month-by-month plan will ensure your vibe remains unblemished. It’s not an impossible price and after admiring the beauty of a Wix website, it is rather difficult to accept those advertising banners wrecking your awesome work.

Yet another, and perhaps more significant disappointing discovery was made when loading the site on my mobile phone. With HTML 5 technology and, by extension, responsive web design, I expected the site to adapt its appearance to suit my phone’s screen. But it didn’t. In fact, it looked quite horrendous! I found that the mobile version of my website must be made separately and from scratch, by going into My Accounts > Manage and Edit Site > Add Mobile Site. It’s a four-step process and it’s quite simple, though the editing process isn’t as smooth or as thorough as it is with the actual website.

The mobile version of the site is also not very impressive. Images appear pixelated, spacing between elements is awkward and it is rather poorly designed. Do you have to make a mobile version of your Me-Site? It’s up to you. In this day and age, though, you must assume that potential employers will try to look at your Me-Site on their phone, so choose wisely. But which one looks better? That’s anyone’s guess.

It seems that in order to truly experience to advantages of Wix (and there are many), you will have to lighten your wallet’s load a bit. But $8.25/month seems like a pretty good deal to me, even with the site’s limitations, especially the less-than-perfect mobile version (but between you and me, ladies and gentlemen, but I’ve bought drug store nail polish for more!)

To summarize, here, presented graphically, are the pros and cons of Wix as a Me Site platform:

So, if Wix sounds like the Me Site platform you’ve been waiting for, go for it!

]]>http://degrees2dreams.com/blog/2013/06/10/tops-5-me-site-platforms-part-4-wix/feed/0How starting a professional blog opens doors in your job searchhttp://degrees2dreams.com/blog/2013/06/05/how-starting-a-professional-blog-opens-doors-in-your-job-search/
http://degrees2dreams.com/blog/2013/06/05/how-starting-a-professional-blog-opens-doors-in-your-job-search/#respondWed, 05 Jun 2013 11:16:10 +0000http://degrees2dreams.com/?p=2600If you called the CEO of the company you’re dying to work for, would she know your name, take your call, and be excited to hear from you?

Scenario #1: You’ve identified the company you really, really want to work for. You get your courage up and call the CEO (start at the top, right?). She has absolutely no idea who you are (and is upset to be interrupted by a stranger calling out of the blue), and simply says, “I’m sorry, you’ve reached the wrong extension; I’ll transfer you to HR.” She hangs up and that’s the end of your chance to connect with the CEO. If, that is, you even managed to get by her administrative assistant in the first place!

Scenario #2: If, however, you are the author of a professional blog about a hot topic in her field, you would have already interviewed her, made her look good, and promoted her on social media. She would already know your name and have been impressed with your skills and industry knowledge. So she would pick up the phone enthusiastically and say, “Amanda! How are you?! I loved that blog post your wrote about me; all my friends said it was terrific! What can I do for you?!”

That difference, that connection, that relationship, that positive feeling about you at the highest level of your target company is worth its weight in gold.

And you got it simply by starting a professional blog and interviewing the key players in your field.

What’s not to like?

Bottom line: Most jobs are filled through connections. HR people start trying to fill open positions by advertising in-house to people they know. Then they ask for referrals from employees (what employee is going to recommend a loser?). And if the CEO recommends someone, what HR person is going to say, “no”?

If no one inside the company or friends outside the company have any candidates, the HR folks will then scour LinkedIn and other online sources looking for profiles of people who fit their needs. Finally, and only when they are really desperate, will they post the opening online. Only 10-20% of all job openings are advertised.

Which means: If you have connections in your target companies (whether it’s the CEO or a department head or other key player), they will know about openings in their own companies and in other companies in their field that they learned about through their professional grapevine.

By writing a professional blog about that field, you are making a name for yourself and plugging into that grapevine.

And by writing a professional blog, you are proving to those people that you are skilled, up to date on industry trends, personable, intelligent, eager, and driven. You’ve proven yourself, unlike all the people who are just sending in look-alike resumes and don’t stand out from the crowd.

So, while you’re hobnobbing with CEOs, your friends are sending dozens of resumes out to “black hole” job postings and never hearing a thing. Their self-esteem is sliding toward depression while yours is soaring higher with every interview and blog post.

Don’t wait another day. Start your professional blog and start making friends in high places!

Wondering how to start? Check out our posts by Lauren Terry about launching a professional blog:

Creativity is finally getting some well-deserved appreciation in the work place but now that it’s worming its into almost every career, you might find yourself struggling. Check out 7 Ways To Boost Your Creativity and set that imagination loose.

Vine is climbing the ranks FAST. It’s been utilized to create resumes, flip-books, the mandatory cat videos and more. And now it’s on Android! Get Hands On With Vine For Android and show off those social media skills.

If you’re having a tough time scoring an interview, you might want to check out these 7 Stand-Out Tricks. (You might even be able to check a few off your list if you’re a dedicated D2D-er.)